Tuesday, September 02, 2008

Dress Code

The 2006 Wolverines, under Coach Carr, at the 12/31/06 Pep Rally the day before the Rose Bowl.
The 2008 Wolverines, under Coach Rod, on 8/30/08 doing the inaugural Victors Walk on the way to the stadium.


The initial Victors Walk was a huge success as fans lined the path to The Big House. However, I noticed that Coach Rod relaxed the dress code. Whereas Coach Carr often made his players wear a coat and tie (see top picture), Coach Rod allowed his players to dress casual. I think the relaxation of the dress protocol is too lenient. Although the players looked fine in their team issued casual duds, I liked that under Coach Carr the players would sport more professional attire. It gave the team an air of discipline and orderliness.

Coach Carr's practice of requiring the players to wear a coat and tie was a continuation of the policy set by Coach Schembechler. In his book, Bo's Lasting Lessons: The legendary coach teaches the timeless fundamentals of leadership, Coach Schembechler recounted what he told the players about dressing up. At page 70, Bo wrote, "When we travel, we represent the University of Michigan and Michigan Football. That's why all of you have been issued a tailored blue suit coat with a Michigan patch on the breast pocket and a maize-and-blue tie, with dark pants." Bo recounted that a player inquired, "Why do we need to wear a coat and a tie just to get on a bus?" Bo wrote that he responded, "I'll tell you why. For one thing, you're going to act better, and you're going to feel better about yourself, when you're dressed properly. You have less chance of acting like a fool, and doing something you'll regret later, when you dress properly. If you're a sloppy-looking guy, then you're probably going to act that way, too. But if you're a class act, then you've got to dress like one and you've got to act like one. That's just part of the discipline of a good program."

Is it a coincidence that the 2008 Wolverines looked like they lacked discipline as they continually failed to execute versus Utah? Maybe the Wolverines should go to a coat-and-tie for the next Victors Walk. Go Blue!

5 Comments:

At 12:15 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

What a great idea of the "Victors Walk". I must admit I was a little disappointed to see them sporting casual attire. I really hope that RR will continue the tradition that Bo has set. GO BLUE!!!

 
At 2:13 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

never helped Carr win the Rose Bowl that year.

team needs to execute and the D needs to be ON from the beginning;

 
At 4:02 PM, Blogger Buzz said...

I agree with you completely. I almost feel lost after seeing that mess against Utah.

 
At 4:22 PM, Blogger Aram said...

I thought I was the only one who noticed this. It's trivial, but they're representing the University of Michigan. Dress like it.

That goes for Rich Rodriguez, too. When the guy shows up for a basketball game where he's appearing at midcourt wearing a short-sleeve t-shirt under a sport coat, alongside his wife who looks like a frizzled cheerleader off the Vegas strip, that says a lot about what he values in personal appearance. Those guys should be wearing coats and ties coming off the bus and leaving the locker room after the game, not sweatsuits.

 
At 8:17 PM, Blogger Unknown said...

Dress code? They don't need any stinking DRESS CODE!

Could care less. I want the team to be relaxed and focused to kick ass on game day. I don't care what they wear.

 

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